According to a new report from iPad-only newspaper The Daily, citing unnamed `inside' sources, Microsoft is `actively working' on a series of updates which will bring the company's Office suit of apps to the Apple iPad, and also a forthcoming Mac version.

As per The Daily report, the upgrades which Microsoft is specifically coming up with include Office for iPad; a new Office edition for Mac OS X Lion; as well as Office 2012 for the presently-in-beta-form Windows 8.

The report, by Matt Hickey, reveals an end-2012 timeline - almost in coincidence with the expected Windows 8 launch - for the release of Microsoft's new Office for Mac and an Office for Windows 8. However, it is being projected that the iPad's Office version would likely be launched "well ahead of that date."

With Microsoft's Office coming to the iPad, it is chiefly a revision for the Apple tablet that is being highlighted; with the forecasts put forth by The Daily hinting at a "significantly lower" cost of Word, Excel and Powerpoint software vis
-a-vis the cost of the full Office version.

Underscoring that the popularity of the Apple iWork suite, which comprises Pages, Keynote, Numbers and other apps, the report from The Daily has noted that the cost of `Office for iPad' will apparently fall in line with the £6.99 standalone price-point of iWork.

In addition, it is also being claimed in the report that the iPad's Office suite will also boast compatibility with the Office 365 cloud solution.